Not Everything is Black and White
by Half-Demon-Cali
Summary: AU. In order to work off debts, Rinne takes a friend-recommended job at host club. When one girl of high social ranking requests him, it starts out as a way to collect - And turns into raging jealousy, budding romance, family secrets, and hidden ancestry. [Hiatus]
1. Chapter 1

Why am I starting a new story when I have so many unfinished? Because I'm insane, that's why. Plus, this seemed like a semi-good idea, so I'm going to wing it. A note in advance, the rating on this story is going to change from T to M quite a bit, because I'm not sure what direction it's going to go. I have some main ideas down, but otherwise, this story is basically the Indy Ploy (If you don't know what it is, look it up on TV Tropes). So don't be surprised if the rating goes up at some point.

All cultural stuff and puns are at the end of the chapter.

* * *

He stood in the back, watching his fellow staff members as they flirted and poured drinks. Their clients seemed to be enjoying themselves, some giggling like crazy, others making suggestive comments and gestures. The hosts were, of course, going along with the antics; anything to get their pay and fill their quota. He, himself, tended not to degrade himself as much as some others did. Only if he really had to. He simply shook his head, and walked away from the employee lounge's door.

He was a host. A young, nineteen-year-old, working at a host club to pay his way through school, and to work off numerous debts. He wasn't getting paid a whole lot, since he was new, but he took what he could get. He was known, at Renai MAI, as Aoshi. Some people thought it was a strange nickname choice, considering he was neither "blue" nor "purple". He was "red". But, as was everyone else's, his real name was unimportant around here.

"Oi, Rinne!" At the name, the man known as Aoshi turned his head. His good friend, known as Ryoga around the club, walked through the lounge's door, a fairly stupid grin on his face. Rinne, of course, was Aoshi's real name. "What are you doing back here all by yourself, Rinne?" Rinne silently snorted to himself. _He must've had a few if he's calling me by my first name…_ Normally, his friend called him by his last name. It was rare to hear his name being called by Ryoga.

Naturally, Ryoga wasn't his real name. His name was Tsubasa Jumonji, and he was Rinne's best friend; he also might've been one of his _only_ friends. He was the one who had gotten him the job at Renai MAI, and was one of the more popular hosts. Kami, and Tsubasa, knew he needed the job. Clarification is probably needed at this point.

Rinne is an in-debt college student living on his own. Thanks to his deadbeat of a father, Sabato, he had little to no money for himself. Sabato sucked him dry whenever he found out that his son had money. His life was an utter hell, thanks to that. He was paying off college by himself, he was paying off high school by himself, he was paying off his apartment by himself… And daddy dearest was off skipping and wooing the ladies with the money he stole from his own child.

Oh, _yes_. He hated his father. _Dearly_.

"… I have no clients tonight, Jumonji," Rinne answered stoically. "I was not requested." Tsubasa wrapped his arm around his friend's shoulders.

"That _sucks_, man… _Buuut_ you're still new here, so it's not _thaaaaat_ surprising…" Rinne made a face.

"Are you drunk, Jumonji?"

"Only a little. My brother and I just had three girls who love their alcohol, apparently…" Tsubasa answered. "I _proooobably_ have around two more girls to cater to tonight, then we can go home, '_kaaaay_?"

"Stop slurring your words," Rinne said in reply. "You're making it too obvious that you can't hold your liquor well."

"Like you're any better, Rinne." _Touché._ Just then, the door flung open again, and Tsubasa's twin brother burst in, looking just as bad.

"_Heeeey_, _Tsu_-_ba_-_sa_," he called. Tsubasa turned around, earrings smacking his cheeks.

"What is it, Miroku?" Miroku grinned.

"_Guesssss whoooo's heeeereeeee_?" Tsubasa immediately got the same grin on his face.

"The Higurashi girls?" Miroku nodded in response. Rinne stared at them both with his usual half-lidded gaze. Why they got so excited when those two girls came, he never knew. They weren't even requested by the girls. Maybe they just got excited to see another pair of twins.

Tsubasa released the redhead from his grip, and ran out the door to join his brother in the club. When the door shut, Rinne walked over to it, and peered through the door's window. His boss was welcoming the rich girls, and was showing them to a seat.

The girls were Kagome and Sakura Higurashi, a set of fraternal twins. They looked exactly alike, except Kagome had black hair, and Sakura's was dark brown. Their father, Tetsuo Mamiya, was a big-time company president, and their mother, Kaiya Higurashi, was a world-renowned designer. Needless to say, for them, coming to a host club didn't even put a dent in their wallets.

Possibly, somewhere deep, deep in the back of his mind, Rinne wished one of them would request him; getting rich clients like them could really help him out. Then reality kicked him in the stomach. _Fat chance. Nobody like them wants a nobody like me._

* * *

"Ah, Kagome-sama, Sakura-sama. Once again, you grace us with your presence."

Kiyotsugu, the host club's boss, led the two girls to their favorite spot. He had his usual grin on his face, one that made him look a bit too much like a stalker. Nobody noticed it, though.

"Always nice to see you too, Kiyojyuji-san," Kagome greeted, taking a seat in the velvet chair. Sakura sat down beside her. Kiyotsugu continued to smile.

"Who will you have tonight, girls?"

"Like you don't know." Kagome and Sakura smiled. Under the lighting, they really looked truly identical. "The usual," Kagome continued. Kiyotsugu nodded.

"And you, Sakura-sama?" Sakura raised an eyebrow.

"Didn't you hear my sister? The usual."

"Ah, terribly sorry, Sakura-sama," Kiyotsugu apologized, losing his smile temporarily. "Shima-kun has quit his job at Renai MAI, regretfully." Sakura pouted.

"That's too bad…" she mumbled. "Let me have the menu, then." Kiyotsugu's grin returned. He pulled the menu out from underneath his arm (He had it in advance), handed it to the brown-haired girl, and walked back to the entrance. Kagome looked over at her sister, waiting for her host to come.

"Too bad Shima quit," she commented. "He was cute, with his two-tone hair…" Sakura gave her a look.

"And Ranma isn't cute?"

"No, he isn't." As she answered, a tall man with long, silvery hair in a black suit walked up to them. He bowed to Kagome, and smiled.

"Hello again, Kagome-san," he greeted, sitting down next to her. "I see you've gotten highlights since I last saw you; purple is definitely one of your best colors." Kagome whispered over to Sakura,

"Ranma's not cute; he's _hot_." Then she turned to Ranma, and gave him an award-winning smile. "Thank you, Ranma-kun." As her sister and Ranma continued their conversation, Sakura was looking at the list of hosts. Most of them she had met before, when she and Kagome had first come to Renai MAI. However, there was one name that was new to her.

She raised her hand, and yelled out for the club's boss. "Kiyojyuji-san!" Kiyotsugu came running over at the call, shooing away some of the wandering hosts who had been staring at Sakura. He smiled at her.

"Yes, Sakura-sama? What can I do for you? Have you chosen someone new?" Sakura looked up at him with slight confusion.

"Kiyojyuji-san, who is Aoshi? I don't believe I've seen him before." Kiyotsugu's smile faded halfway.

"Aoshi is our newest member of the club," he explained. "He signed up after Shima quit. He hasn't had too many clients since he joined, but I keep him on because, well…" Kiyotsugu leaned in closer. "Word's goin' around that he needs the money. You didn't hear it from me." Sakura's expression was unreadable. Kiyotsugu blinked. "Sakura-sama?" Sakura handed the menu to him.

"I'd like to see him, please."

"…Who?"

"Aoshi-kun." Kiyotsugu blinked again.

"Are you sure?"

"Quite." Sakura looked at him with determined eyes. Kiyotsugu bowed to her.

"As you wish. I will fetch him." Kiyotsugu turned one hundred-eighty degrees, and headed for the employee's lounge.

* * *

"Feh… Kubinashi was a lucky bastard, I tell ya…" Tsubasa ranted, fixing his hair with a small comb. He and Miroku came back to the lounge after getting a few looks at Kagome and Sakura, and a few cell phone pictures in the process. Miroku gave a low whistle.

"Kubinashi, Inuyasha… I'm jealous of _boooth_ of them," he replied. "The Higurashi sisters are both good clients… And they're both hot." Rinne shook his head.

"You two are impossible sometimes," he muttered. "You're not supposed to comment on the women that come in here." Miroku made a childish face at him.

"There's no rule against it, Rinne," he retorted, still a bit drunk. Tsubasa nodded in agreement, and sighed.

"Sakura-sama is such a lovely girl…" he commented to no one in particular. He sat up straight, with a determined look on his face. "And with Kubinashi _looooong_ gone, maybe it'll finally be my chance to have her as a client!" Rinne narrowed his eyes at him slightly.

"I'm fairly sure you're not supposed to get emotionally attached to clients, Jumonji," he insisted strictly. Tsubasa waved his hand at him.

"_Pleeeeease_, Rokudo." Rinne could tell Tsubasa was a bit more sober at the moment – He called him by his last name. "First off, she's not my client. Second, don't talk like you've been here longer than I have." Miroku just nodded in agreement. Rinne kept his arms folded. The door was pushed open, and the three turned to see their boss. Immediately, the Jumonji siblings stopped fooling around and paid attention.

"Kiyojyuji-san!" Tsubasa cried. Miroku gave a slight wave.

"What'cha need, Kiyo?" Kiyotsugu ignored the nickname for the moment, and looked to his newest worker.

"Rokudo, fix yourself up. You've got a request." Rinne looked up in surprise. So did the twins.

"_Whooooaaaaa_…!" Miroku drew out his exclamation. Tsubasa cracked a small grin.

"Really, Kiyojyuji?" he tried to hide a snigger. "Who?" Kiyotsugu grinned back at him.

"Why, Sakura Higurashi-sama, of course." Tsubasa's eyes widened. Miroku laughed at his brother's expression. Rinne's face looked similar to Tsubasa's.

"Kiyojyuji-san, are you sure?" he checked. If this was a joke, it wasn't a funny one, so far. Kiyotsugu shrugged.

"She said she wanted to see Aoshi. So straighten yourself up, and get out there, man." The purple-haired man looked to Miroku, and smacked his forehead. "And make sure he's a bit more sober next time he goes out. He's annoying when he's drunk." Kiyotsugu then took his leave. Tsubasa turned to Rinne, glaring at him ever-so-slightly.

"You are one lucky bastard, Rokudo…" he gritted, eyes starting to flare. Miroku was still laughing at his brother's bad luck. Rinne stood up, fixing his vest and sleeves.

"Jumonji, you need to calm down," he said in an extremely flat voice. "Just because you're after her doesn't mean I am, necessarily." He could tell that fixing his hair in a nearby wall mirror wasn't calming Tsubasa down in any way, but he wasn't about to miss a chance to walk away with some serious, and needed, cash. _Time to put on an act._ He grabbed something off a nearby table, and headed for the door. Before leaving, Rinne looked over his shoulder. "And Kiyojyuji-san is right; Miroku _is_ annoying when he's drunk." When the redhead had completely left the room, Miroku was still laughing. Tsubasa turned to him, temper already being tested.

"Just what the _hell_ is so funny, Miroku?" Miroku chuckled a bit more, before answering.

"You luck sucks, Tsubasa…"

Tsubasa whacked him in the head, then helped his brother up, and guided him to the kitchen.

* * *

1) Renai MAI (恋愛マイ) is the name of the host club (A fictional name, not a real one). _Renai_ means "love", "passion", or "emotion"; _mai_ can mean "dance", or it could be a name, but since it's written in katakana, it has no significant meaning.

Also, I'm making Renai MAI a bit unorthodox, compared to regular Japanese host clubs, but _whaaaatever_.

2) At host clubs, the hosts have "stage names" taken from historical, film, or anime characters, that say things about their personality. So when a host is called by name by a client, it's not their real name. (Obviously, I'm using anime characters)

3) The whole "blue and purple" thing, and even Rinne's nickname, is a lame pun. Rinne's nickname is taken from a character from _Rurouni Kenshin_, Aoshi Shinomori. Aoshi is quiet, intelligent, level-headed, and thinks before he acts. Sound familiar? That's why I made this Rinne's nickname. And as for the color thing, Aoshi's name is written with the kanji for "blue" and "purple".

Tsubasa is only called Ryoga because they're both the dogged nice guy of their stories. I would've called him Miroku (He could be Miroku's twin! *shot*), but you can see why I didn't.

4) I'm going based on manga here, not anime, so Kagome has blue eyes, like Sakura. Animated, Kagome has brown eyes, as does Sakura (Well, that's what the CM showed).

5) By the way, the reason that their family name isn't Mamiya is because dad married into mom's family instead of the other way around.

6) Kiyotsugu Kiyojyuji is a character from _Nurarihyon no Mago_. I'll be doing more crossovers in this story besides _InuYasha_ in the future, and _Nurarihyon no Mago_ is one of them. _Rurouni Kenshin_ is not.

7) Kubinashi is a character from _Nurarihyon no Mago_, and he's the one who took up the name Shima (For those of you who read that series, don't worry; Kubinashi's head is fully attached to his shoulders in this story). Inuyasha… Well, everyone knows where he's from, and his nickname is Ranma. Again, like people don't know where that name is from.


	2. Chapter 2

Sakura might get some OOC moments in this chapter, and in future chapters. I'm sorry, but at this point in _Kyoukai no Rinne_, Rinne himself, the _**stoic**_, has more emotions than her. I have to give her SOME kind of emotions, otherwise, this story is going to be very difficult to write.

One thing: Even I wasn't fully satisfied with this chapter. I think it could've turned out better.

Okay, two things: Don't be expecting really quick updates like this again; it's only fast because I had originally planned for part of this chapter to go into chapter one. I do have my own story (Look me up on FictionPress, I have the same name on there as I do on here) that I want to update, so yeah. I'm not good at multitasking, as you can see by all my unfinished stories.

THREE things: You can see a picture of Sakura (Her outfit for this and the last chapter) on my deviantART page. Yes, same name as on here and FP, hyphens and all.

* * *

Sakura silently waited for Aoshi to show up. Next to her, her sister and Inuyasha were flirting with each other, being a bit more adventurous than normal. She felt kind of uncomfortable next to them, all alone, but Kiyotsugu had reassured her that her host would be with her shortly. She wondered exactly how different his definition of "shortly" was from her own.

"Ah, Sakura Higurashi-sama?"

Sakura turned to the source of the voice. It was a tall, red-headed man, with equally red eyes. He was clad in a black vest, a white, long-sleeved dress shirt, and black pants, complete with black shoes. With his hands behind his back, he almost looked like a butler of some sort. She raised an eyebrow.

"_You're_ Aoshi?" she asked, a bit skeptically. The man nodded.

"Yes, Sakura Higurashi-sama, that would be me," he replied without hesitation. Her mouth twitched into a half-smile.

"Strange choice of name, considering your coloring…" Rinne had an expression similar to her own on his face.

"That wouldn't be the first time I've heard that, Sakura Higurashi-sama…"

"No, I guess not." Sakura motioned him over. "Well, Aoshi-kun, don't just stand there. Sit." Rinne nodded and did as he was told, and took his seat next to her. He looked at her, up and down, then focused his attention on her face once more.

"Your taste seems to be close to a Gothic Lolita style, Sakura Higurashi-sama…?" Sakura shrugged, and placed her hands on her knees.

"Well, it's not my first choice, but since my mother specializes in these kinds of outfits, I give them a try when I feel like it," she explained patiently. "Or when I come to this place, with Kagome."

"They look very good on you, Sakura Higurashi-sama," Rinne commented. "Though I doubt there's anything that looks bad on you." Sakura smiled at him.

"Thank you, Aoshi-kun," she started. "But you don't need to be so formal when addressing me." Rinne frowned.

"With all due respect, Sakura Higurashi-sama, I feel that I should address someone like you with much formality." Sakura furrowed her brows.

"Someone like me…?"

"Someone so high above my own social standing." Sakura tapped him on the shoulder lightly.

"Don't put yourself down like that, Aoshi-kun."

"I'm only speaking the truth," Rinne answered. Sakura wanted to scold him for insulting himself like that, but then remembered what Kiyotsugu had told her about his employment here. _… Hnn. I guess Aoshi-kun is talking about his living situation, since this is where he's getting his money from…_ Then, for a second time, she noticed his closed hands.

"Hey, Aoshi-kun, what are you holding?" Rinne looked down, the corner of his mouth twitching up slightly.

"Something that might impress you, or might make you think I'm a weirdo." Rinne pulled his fists out, and revealed that he had four hacky sacks in his hands. Sakura was still confused. "Watch this." Before the pigtailed girl could ask what was going on, Rinne threw the hacky sacks, two in each hand, from behind his back to in front. He caught the bean bags in between his fingers, then threw them into the opposite hands, and repeated the throwing process again and again. He did it with such immense speed and grace, that you could tell that he had been doing it for years. He didn't mess up once.

Rinne finished by catching all four hacky sacks in between his left hand's fingers. By the end, Sakura was grinning ear to ear. "That was amazing, Aoshi-kun!" she exclaimed. "How'd you learn otedama?" She barely knew any _women_ that knew what the game _was_, never mind how to _play_ it! Rinne laid the hacky sacks behind him.

"I spent a lot of time with my obaa-san as a child…" he replied. He paused before continuing. "… I think it's safe to say that she wanted a granddaughter." Sakura giggled a bit at first, but the expression on the red-headed boy's face wasn't a joking one. She stared at him for a few seconds.

"Hmm… So… Aoshi-kun…" Sakura bit the inside of her cheek, unsure of what to talk about. _He's kind of quiet…_ "Aoshi-kun, you're kind of strange, you know?" Rinne raised his eyebrows at her sentence.

"Strange how, Sakura Higurashi-sama?" Sakura misunderstood the curious tone in his voice, and mistook it for hurt.

"Oh, no offense, Aoshi-kun!" she apologized. "It's just…" Typical hosts were extremely talkative and flirty. Aoshi was, well, a bit _different_ than the others. He wasn't all over her like some other guys were, like Ranma was with Kagome; not like her sister _complained_ or anything, but still. Aoshi seemed a bit more proper. "You don't seem like you fit in around here." She mentally smacked herself. _That didn't sound good outside my head._ The air between them was silent, minus the music and conversations being held around them. Rinne gave the smallest of shrugs, as a response.

"No, I suppose I don't." Sakura fixed her skirt.

"If you know that, then why are you-"

"It's not important." Sakura's eyes widened. Rinne cursed himself. _God damn it._ He didn't mean to snap. He bowed his head a couple of times. "I'm very sorry, Sakura Higurashi-sama. I didn't mean so respond so harshly. I'd never mean to upset a lovely girl such as yourself." Sakura blinked. _I was right. He's definitely different._ She placed her hand on his shoulder gently. When Rinne looked up, she removed it again.

"Aoshi-kun, it's fine. I shouldn't have been prying in the first-"

"Sakura-sama!" Sakura and Rinne jumped in the seats, hearing the girl's name called. Tsubasa suddenly appeared, on one knee, holding a pink rose up to Sakura's face. "How are you doing this evening, Sakura-sama?" Sakura slowly took the rose from him.

"Um, I'm fine… Ryoga-kun, was it?" Tsubasa chuckled, and stood up. He brushed his white dress pants off, clearing any dirt and dust from them.

"Indeed, that is my chosen name, Sakura-sama," he replied. He looked to Rinne, and then back at Sakura. "Are you having a good time with Aoshi?" Sakura smiled. Tsubasa thought she was cute like that; Rinne thought so too, but in more of a nonsexual way, unlike his love-struck fool of a friend.

"I have to say," Sakura began. "Aoshi-kun is certainly a bit… _unusual_, compared to other hosts." Rinne shrank back a bit, but not enough for either people to notice. Tsubasa continued to grin.

"He is a bit _odd_, but you'll have to excuse him." Rinne glared at him. Tsubasa didn't notice, and continued to talk. "He's not exactly cut out for the host club world, but with the money that comes with the job, he's not likely to quit unless fired; and _that's_ not going to happen soon, I take it. After all, _I'm_ the one who recommended him, so-" Rinne couldn't listen to him jabber anymore. He stood up sharply, quickly apologized to Sakura in the most polite way he could muster, and then proceeded to drag Tsubasa away by his shirt collar, and into the lounge.

Rinne dragged Tsubasa's shirt collar down so he could talk to his friend eye-level, and spoke in a dangerously quiet tone. "_What_ the _hell_ do you think you're _doing_, Jumonji?" he hissed out. Tsubasa tore himself away from the redhead's grasp, and straightened out the wrinkles in his shirt.

"_Must_ you grab me like that, Rokudo?"

"_Answer_ the _question_, Jumonji, before I get _mad_." _Aren't you already mad?_ Tsubasa responded silently.

"Rokudo, let me ask," he started. "What's wrong with giving my beloved Sakura-sama a token of my appreciation?"

"You mean your _affection_."

"Same difference." Rinne was trying to keep himself cool, but the fact that his session had been interrupted was _very_ infuriating. He got off the topic of the rose, and went on ranting.

"Jumonji, you barged in on one of my _only_ requests, where my client _happened_ to be one of _the_ richest girls that have ever walked into this place, probably. _Then_ you _continued_ to talk with her like she was _your_ client, and not only _that_, you were talking about _me_; and it _didn't_ sound like compliments." Tsubasa folded his arms.

"It's not like what I said wasn't true," he retorted. Rinne found it harder to keep his voice down.

"That's not the _point_." he gritted, getting a bit more volume than he wanted. "You _know_ I have debts to pay off, and yet you're _purposely_ trying to steal my chance to make some actual money!" Tsubasa glared at him, starting to get equally as mad.

"You're talking as if Sakura-sama is just a _paycheck_ to you!"

"She _is_, you delirious _**twit**_!" Rinne clenched his fists tight enough to stop himself from taking a swing at his "friend". "I stick with this job to get _paid_, Jumonji! I don't have some _inane __**attraction**_ to her like _you_ do!"

"My feelings are _not_ ridiculous!" Tsubasa yelled. "And that's _not_ why I interrupted!"

"You know _damn_ well that that's a lie, Jumonji." Rinne folded his arms tightly. "You wouldn't have done that if you weren't such a jealous fool!" Tsubasa narrowed his eyes.

"I have _nothing_ to be jealous of, Rokudo. You know _why_?" Rinne stiffened, dangerously close to losing his cool.

"_Enlighten me_." Before Tsubasa could stick his foot in his mouth any further, Kiyotsugu burst in and hit both of them on the head. While they winced in pain, he spoke.

"_Both of you_. _In my office_. _**Now**__!_"

* * *

"What the _hell_ is _**wrong**_ with the two of you!"

Neither Rinne nor Tsubasa answered. Kiyotsugu smacked his hands on his desk, hard. "This is a _host club_, for Kami's sake! _Not_ a _high school __**hallway**_!" Again, neither boys spoke. Kiyotsugu turned to Rinne, first. "Rokudo, you left a client _alone_. That is _not_ how a good host acts, _especially_ if the reason you're leaving is for _arguing_! The rules make it explicitly clear that any kind of violence is _banned_!" Rinne hung his head, and muttered a 'Yes, sir' beneath his breath. Tsubasa snickered. Kiyotsugu heard him, and turned his fury on him next. "And _you_, Jumonji." Tsubasa quickly shut up and stood at attention, arms stiffly at his sides. "You are _not_ to join a session unless you are requested, or invited; and I use the word join _very_ lightly! You _blatantly_ interrupted Rokudo's host session, that _alone_ is breaking a _major_ rule, but _then_ you talked _down_ on your fellow host, and tried to take over his meeting with Sakura-sama!"

"Kiyojyuji-san, I-"

"I'm not _finished_, Jumonji." Tsubasa quieted himself again. Kiyotsugu cleared his throat. "Both of you are in serious violation of Renai MAI's rules, and will be serving a form of punishment."

"Yes, Kiyojyuji-san," both boys chimed together. Kiyotsugu sat down in his chair.

"_But_, I am not going to fire you two. Jumonji, because you're one of my best hosts, and losing you would be bad for _me_." Tsubasa was inwardly relieved that his boss was money-hungry enough not to give him the pink slip. "As for Rokudo, this is, so far, your first time breaking the rules. Twice more, and you _will_ be let go." Rinne nodded. "Now, as for your punishments…" Tsubasa bit his lip. Rinne just stared. Kiyotsugu seemed to be in deep thought. "You two are not to come in for work until the twenty-seventh of this month. Rokudo, the salary you get from me will be docked, but you will continue to get paid for said amount of time. Jumonji, no pay." Tsubasa's mouth dropped open.

"_Two weeks_! But- But our clients! _Kiyojyuji-san_-!"

"Want me to make it _three_ weeks, Jumonji?"

"That's not it! Why does _he_ get paid while _I_ don't!" Kiyotsugu held his gaze against his angered employee.

"You need the money _that badly_, Jumonji?" he asked, already knowing the answer. Tsubasa processed his words silently. "I didn't think so."

"But-"

"Would you like yours docked, as well?"

"…No, sir…" Tsubasa hung his head. Kiyotsugu nodded to both of them.

"Now, both of you. Get your stuff and go home. Rokudo, I'll tell Sakura-sama that you had to leave." Rinne nodded slowly, then turned face and headed for the door. Tsubasa did the same. When the two had left, Kiyotsugu sighed, loudly and heavily.

* * *

Tsubasa looked over his shoulder as he gathered his things. Rinne had his back turned to him, and he was silent. He didn't like that combination. It meant he was getting the cold shoulder. It always scared Tsubasa when he did that, because the last time Rinne had given him the cold shoulder treatment, he hadn't spoken to him for a week and a half. _He freaks me out when he's too quiet… And then that prank he pulled on me…_ He shuddered in remembrance, for a moment; then decided to test the waters. "… Hey, Rokudo-"

"I hate you right now." Tsubasa looked startled by the sudden vocal response he had gotten.

"I know you hate me right now," he started again. "But we _both_ got our asses kicked out for a while, so lighten up. At least _you're_ getting paid." Rinne looked at him from the corner of his eye. Tsubasa backed up an inch of two. For such fiery eyes, Rinne's glare was quite cold.

"You not _only_ lost our jobs, temporarily," the redhead replied in a flat voice. "But do you _know_ how much money you've possibly _cost_ me? _You're_ the one who got me the job because you _know_ I have debts and tuition to get off my back, so why did you ruin it for me?" Tsubasa played with one of his earrings.

"Look, I'm sorry, okay?" He removed his suit's white jacket and placed it in his bag, as neatly as possible. Underneath, his uniform was exactly like Rinne's. "I just find it annoying that Sakura-sama picked you."

"I _knew_ you were jealous, you don't need to explain _that_."

"Yeah, yeah…" Tsubasa's eye twitched ever-so-slightly._ How does he always know when I'm lying?_ Rinne turned to face him, fully.

"Well, you got your wish. Sakura Higurashi-sama isn't going to be requesting me again anytime soon." Tsubasa furrowed his brows.

"That's not my wish." Rinne stared at him with his usual half-lidded eyes.

"Then what is it?"

"My wish is to someday move to Hokkaido and live on a farm with lots of puppies, kittens, and ponies to keep me company, and then die happily and ride to Heaven on a magical rainbow." There was a long pause. Both Rinne and Tsubasa started laughing, Rinne simply chuckling. Seeing his friend's somewhat-smiling face, Tsubasa grinned himself. "We okay, Rokudo?" Rinne thought about it quietly.

"I suppose so…" he answered, finally. "Oh, one thing."

"Yeah, what?"

"Can I have two hundred thousand yen?" Tsubasa face-faulted.

"What the hell do you need that much money for!"

"Rent, college, other necessities… The obvious."

"Why that much?"

"Because you're rich, you're my friend, and you know that if you don't give it to me, your parents probably will."

"That's because they frickin' _adore_ you, for some reason… And when did you become so evil?"

"Around the time you almost cost me my job at a host club."

"Touché. And it's not _all_ my fault that I interrupted. Some of it's Miroku's. So hate him, too." Rinne raised his eyebrows in interest.

"How is it Miroku's fault?"

"He said he'd give me his tickets to Australia if I went out there and gave Sakura-sama a rose," Tsubasa explained, shrugging. Rinne grabbed a silver tray from a nearby stack, and hit Tsubasa over the head with it, using a good amount of his strength. "Owww! I _know_ I went overboard with the talking, but _damn_! That _hurt_, Rokudo!" Tsubasa rubbed where the silverware had made contact. Rinne set the tray back on the pile.

"Jumonji, even _I_ know better than to listen to Miroku when he's drunk; and he's _your_ brother."

"But I wanted the tickets."

"Do you honestly think he's going to remember that when he's finally sober?" Tsubasa blinked as the words clicked in his head.

"… No tickets?" Rinne shook his head.

"Nope."

"I risked our jobs for nothing?"

"Yup."

"I'm an idiot."

"No kidding."

* * *

It was close to one in the morning when the Higurashi girls left Renai MAI. Kagome stretched her arms behind her back. "Hmm… It's too bad we couldn't stay longer, huh, Sakura-chan?" Sakura looked at her sister strangely, walking beside her through the lit streets of Tokyo.

"You could've stayed, Kagome-chan," she insisted. "I left because Aoshi-kun had to go home, but Ranma-kun was still there. You didn't have to leave." Kagome gave her sister a bright smile, one that almost outshone the neon lights.

"I'm not about to leave my twin sister all alone," she replied, moving closer to Sakura as she did. "Family comes before anything. That _includes_ hosting." Sakura smiled back at her. She was glad the two of them were so attached. "Speaking of hosting…" Kagome continued. "What was his name, Aoshi-kun?" Sakura nodded.

"Ah, yes. That was his stage name," she clarified.

"I'm surprised he didn't flirt with you more," Kagome continued, sounding somewhat bemused. "Shima was practically all over you, like a normal host, but Aoshi…"

"I didn't think he was bad at all," Sakura commented. "He was slightly awkward, but that makes a boy cuter, you know? He was very polite and respectful, not so touchy-feely. Plus, the otedama demonstration he did was _extremely_ impressive." Kagome's brows furrowed.

"Yeah… That was weird. So was he." Sakura shrugged.

"Maybe so…" She looked to the ground for a moment, the corners of her mouth twitching up in a small smile. "But I liked him."

* * *

By the way… EIGHT PAGES OF WRITING! :D Sweetness.

1) Literally, at real host clubs, hosts use almost any means to entertain the girls and women. Keyword being "almost". They can even do magic; but I thought magic would be too cheesy, and Rinne doesn't seem like the perverted type, so I didn't want him to flirt _too_ much, either.

2) Otedama is a juggling game usually learned by girls. It's rare to super-rare to see a boy who knows how to do it (There might be maybe one boy in the history of Japan that knows how to play otedama). You can learn more by looking up "Otedama: A Fading Japanese Juggling Tradition" on Google, and clicking the first link. You can even learn how to play.

3) About the salary thing. Don't get me wrong, I like Tsubasa – But it's _really_ fun to torture him, in written or drawn format. Least he didn't get a deduction like Rinne did.

4) Hokkaido is farmland, yes. About Tsubasa's "wish", yeah, he's not serious. I just wanted to add in something really silly.

5) 200,000 yen is, rounding up, around 2,300 USD, 2,413 Canadian dollars, 1,804 Euros, ect.


	3. Chapter 3

Notes: This chapter happens two days (Well, two nights) after chapters one and two.

- Again, this could've been so much better. I kept rereading it, and nothing clicked in the right place to me. Well, it clicked well enough for me to post it.

- There's a picture of Rinne and Tsubasa in their host outfits on my deviantART page; same name on there as on here.

* * *

_BEEP. BEEP. BEEP. BEEP. BEEP._

Rinne groaned, hearing his alarm clock go off. Still lying face-down on his futon, he reached for the nearest object, a handheld Japanese to English dictionary, and threw it upwards, towards the shelf where his alarm clock sat. It hit the clock head on, but instead of shutting it off, the clock fell from its spot and nailed Rinne in the back of his head; and it was _still_ beeping. As if that wasn't bad enough, someone had started knocking (Pounding could also describe the sound) on his door.

Using what little energy he had at the moment, Rinne turned his alarm clock off, put it to the side, and threw his futon's covers off. He sat up and shook his head in a feeble attempt to gain more consciousness, then stood up, and went for the door. When he saw who it was through the peephole, his morning mood didn't get much better.

Rinne unlocked his door and opened it up, and saw his landlord standing in the doorway. He held back a disgruntled groan. "What is it, Kain?" The silver-haired man was extremely calm, having a stoic expression that rivaled his own, but one could see that he was ticked off. Plus, he had a clipboard. _That_ was never good.

"Good morning, Rinne Rokudo-san," he greeted. "Hope I'm not interrupting anything important." Rinne blinked, his discontented look still in place.

"Oh, nothing…" he murmured. _Just my sleep_. "Now, _what is it_?" Kain looked down at his clipboard, and tapped it with his pencil. There was never a more annoying noise, to Rinne. Kain looked back up.

"Your rent was due three days ago," he explained in a straight voice. "When do you plan on paying it?" Rinne mentally cursed himself. He should've _figured_ that was his reason for coming. He ran his hand through his red bangs, and sighed.

"Look, I'll have it when I have it, okay?" he replied, still a bit groggy. "Give me a couple of days."

"Specify, Rinne Rokudo-san."

"Fourteen days." Kain raised an eyebrow.

"If that's a joke, I'm not laughing." Rinne put his arm against the doorframe, and leaned a bit.

"I'm out of work for a couple of weeks, Kain," he explained flatly. "I don't have much money to spare at the moment." Kain showed no change in emotion. He just continued to stare at the redhead with piercing, icy-blue eyes.

"Get your rent paid as soon as possible, Rinne Rokudo-san." The landlord turned the clipboard to Rinne, and pointed to it with his pencil. "You're getting lazy with paying up." Rinne narrowed his eyes. _Lazy_! He worked late hours, has two jobs, goes to college full time, is up to his neck in debt, and Kain dared to call him _lazy_, of all things? One more reason for the tenant to hate the landlord. He grunted out his answer.

"Fine, Kain. Can I go get ready now? I have classes to get to." Kain tucked his pencil behind his ear, and slipped his clipboard under his arm.

"Do as you wish, just get your rent to me no later than eighteen days." He turned ninety degrees, and started walking down the hall. He didn't get far before he stopped and turned his head over his shoulder. "And from now on, make sure you're wearing a shirt when you answer your door." Rinne watched the man walk down the hall, and turn to the left. He scowled a bit. So he slept in his underwear, big deal. A ton of other people did it._ Besides, it's not up to him how I dress._ Yet another person he hated; not as much as his dad, but still.

He hated Kain. And his little clipboard, too.

* * *

_**Yorokobi University…**_

Rinne trudged on the concrete, trying to reread his notes as he made his way across campus. He shook his head a bit, water droplets flying off his wet hair. Homework was hell to do, so all he did was copy from the textbook. He didn't bother to actually let the information to soak in. Welcome to the beginning of the Early Morning Cram Session.

Or so he _thought_.

"_Rinne_!"

Rinne froze at the voice. _Oh, crap._ He'd recognize that saccharine voice anywhere. He looked over his shoulder, very careful not to turn his head too much; but a glance was all he needed to confirm who it was. _Ageha…_

Ageha was a fellow student at Yorokobi, and someone he had known a long time, whether he liked it or not. She had been chasing after him (He preferred the term "stalking") since middle school. She had wildly-trimmed black hair, periwinkle eyes, and always wore a large, pink bow. She _also_ tended to put on a little _too_ much makeup, but that wasn't much of an issue compared to everything else.

He'd like to think of her as a friend, but her childish attitude and rowdy nature made it hard to see her as anything but a nuisance, most of the time. He sometimes wondered whether or not she realized just how polar opposite their personalities were, but he didn't have time to wonder at the moment. He was currently a target in sight, and he didn't like it. So, he did what he normally did.

He ran like hell.

Rinne ran into the school at full speed, going up and down stairs, jumping over banisters and such, until he made it to the section of the building where his first class was. He paused for a moment, and tried to catch his breath. He was in very good shape, of course, but the morning was still taking its toll on him. He looked to his left and right simultaneously, quite relieved. _Good. I don't think she followed me._

That one thought must have jinxed him, because as soon as he relaxed, Ageha came out of nowhere and super-glomped him with all her might, sending both of them to the ground. Rinne felt the wind get knocked out of him. _**Oh**__, for the __**love**__ of __**God**__! How the __**hell**__ does she manage to do that to me __**every**__**day**__!_ Ageha smiled at him.

"_Gooooood_ morning, Rinne!" she chimed. Rinne bit his tongue. _Feh. So far, there's nothing good about it._ Ageha, as usual, failed to notice his discontented aura. "How are you?"

"… I'm fine. _Get off_." Ageha did as told, not wanting to cause her beloved redhead any discomfort (Too late). As Rinne picked himself up off the floor, the hyper girl continued to ask questions.

"How are you doing in your classes? Are your teachers nice? Do you want to eat lunch together? Why is your hair wet?" Rinne brushed some dust off his shirt.

"In that order, Ageha," he started, in his same monotonic voice. "I'm doing fine, my teachers are fairly dull, but okay, and as for my hair, I took a shower this morning." Ageha swayed back and forth, between her heels and the balls of her feet.

"What about my lunch offer?" she pestered. Rinne scratched his upper arm for a second before answering.

"I'll take it up, if a friend came come with." Ageha's face fell.

"Don't tell me it's Tsubasa Jumonji." Rinne opened his mouth to reply, but Ageha continued to talk. "_Uggghhhh_! I can't _stand_ him! He's always belittling my intelligence and calling me _stupid_ and _treating_ me like I'm _six_!" Rinne didn't _dare_ mention that he was surprised that she knew what the word belittling _meant_, _and_ could use it properly in a sentence. When she wanted to be, the girl could get _scary_ mad. He simply shrugged.

"If he doesn't go, then I don't." A good translation of that sentence would be, 'If he doesn't suffer, then I sure as hell don't have to'. Ageha pouted, and folded her arms childishly.

"Oh, _fine_. He can come." She checked her cell phone, and then looked back up. "Let's meet at the Crimson Café during our lunch breaks." Yes, the girl had even switched her schedule around in order to have the same free periods and lunch breaks as him (Thus, having a similar schedule to Tsubasa, to her chagrin). That was what really chalked her up as a second-class stalker, in Rinne's book. His expression didn't change much.

"Fine." Ageha managed to smile again, before running off.

"See you later, Rinne!" she cried out. Rinne sighed as the girl ran off to her own first period class, silently thanking Kami that his usual morning rendezvous with Ageha was over; but, she had the right idea. People were starting to head for their classrooms, and it would be good to do the same.

Rinne headed into his first class, along with about ten other people at once, and took his usual seat in the back of the room. His backpack slid off his shoulder, and he placed his notebook on the dark-colored desk. As the first bell rang, the teacher stood up, holding a manila envelope.

"Everyone, put your things to the side and take out four sheets of loose-leaf paper," she called out. "We're starting off with a surprise quiz on what you've learned recently." She opened the folder, and held out a sheet of paper, ignoring the displeased expressions on many students' faces. "Your topics are listed on each page, and every one of them is different. Start writing a paper on your topic as soon as you get it." Rinne slammed his head against the desk.

_I hate mornings._

* * *

"Why _noooot?_"

"Like you aren't hyper enough _already_!"

"Meh! What about you, Sakura-chan?"

Sakura looked to the side, where her sister was hanging her head in annoyance. She and Kagome had met with their friend, Rie, for an afternoon of shopping, but they had accidentally gone past Rie's favorite store on the way to Shibuya – The candy shop. Candy meant sugar. Sugar meant being hyper. Sugar is something that is best well hidden from Rie; she was a naturally hyperactive girl.

"… I don't think so, Rie-chan," Sakura finally replied. "There's no way I'm giving you extra money so you can go splurge on chocolate." Beside her, Kagome let out a sigh of relief. Rie pouted.

"You guys are mean!"

"No, we're sensible," Kagome said. Sakura chuckled at Kagome's reply and Rie's reaction. Rie's green eyes seemed to show her emotions just as well as her body did.

"How about we just get going?" Sakura asked, pointing down the street. Kagome smiled, and nodded. Rie continued to pout like a child, but agreed, and followed the sisters as they headed for their favorite shopping area.

* * *

Rinne was beginning to wonder why he had agreed to accompany Ageha to the café, when he _knew _that she had a problem with non-stop talking. Sure, he had made Tsubasa come along, but he was just sitting there, watching him suffer, with that smug little grin on his face. Rinne groaned silently, and smacked his forehead. _If there's __**any**__ justice in the world, __**something**__ will come in and make her __**shut up**__._

Apparently God heard his cry for help, because a young waiter that was walking past them tripped and fell, the contents of his tray spilling all over Tsubasa's head. Ageha started laughing the moment she saw it happen. Rinne simply cracked a small smile. _To whoever was listening, thank you very much._ The girl didn't shut up exactly, but she did stop talking to him, and that was good enough for the moment. There were a couple of other people laughing and sniggering at the case of bad luck. Tsubasa was steaming as much as the hot coffee in his hair. The light-haired waiter got up from the floor, grabbing his tray in the process.

"I'm very sorry, sir!" he cried. "I'll get you a towel right away!" He dashed away, presumably towards the kitchen, to get a towel and refills for the people whose drinks he had spilled. Tsubasa wiped his face with his napkin in an attempt to get his face clean. Ageha was still laughing at him. Tsubasa glared at her.

"What's so God damned _funny_, you spoiled rich girl?" he snarled. Ageha raised an eyebrow, and gave him a skeptical grin.

"That would hurt more coming from someone who _doesn't _have a load of whipped cream on his head," she retorted. Tsubasa looked confused, until he felt the top of his head. He made a disgusted face as he realized that Ageha was right.

"_Errgghhh_! _That's_ in my _hair?_" His exclamation only made Ageha snicker even more. Rinne just drank his smoothie silently, ignoring the arguing he was so used to. Then, as if Tsubasa and Ageha weren't loud enough, a girl walked up to them, slapped a white washcloth onto Tsubasa's head, and yelled,

"_Helloooo there_!" Both Tsubasa and Ageha shut up; Ageha, because she was wondering where the girl had come from, and Tsubasa, because he was currently blinded by a white fabric. The girl had dark hair, forest-green eyes, but was most definitely not an employee. Rinne's expression didn't show much change, only curiosity. The girl smiled brilliantly at them. "Hideki says that he's sorry, mister!" Tsubasa looked up at her, moving the cloth away from his eyes.

"Who's Hideki?" he asked. "And who are you?"

"I'm Rie Hirota, thank you very much!" the girl answered, saluting to Tsubasa sailor-style. "And Hideki is my blonde friend who spilled the lattes and coffee on you." Tsubasa mouthed an 'Oh', and tried to clean his hair with the towel. Ageha grinned at Rie.

"Make sure to tell your friend I said thank you!" Rie gave her a thumbs-up.

"Okay then!" She gave the group a huge smile, before running off. Tsubasa shook his head, trying to dry it faster.

"She was weird," he muttered. Rinne shrugged.

"I've seen weirder."

* * *

"_Finally_, Rie-chan!"

"Where were you for so long…?"

"Where you at the candy place?"

"You didn't spend all your money, did you?"

Rie laughed nervously. _Am I __**that**__ predictable?_ She shook her head quickly in response. "Um, no, I wasn't buying chocolate, if that's what you guys mean…" Kagome and Sakura looked shocked enough at her answer. Rie continued. "I was at the Crimson Café, as a matter of fact." Kagome raised an eyebrow.

"Um, Rie-chan?" she started. "One question…" Sakura picked up from there.

"_Why_? We agreed to eat after shopping a bit." Rie put her right hand on her hip.

"I didn't _eat _there, I got a text from a friend of mine!" she explained. "He needed some help with some orders, and you know that I always respond to friends in need!" She used her opposite hand to fiddle with a few strands of her dark hair. "I would've been here _sooner_, _but _I needed to get him out of some trouble…"

"You're talking about your friend with the bleached hair, right?" Sakura inquired. "I think you mentioned him before… Hideki, was it? Not to be rude, but what kind of trouble did he get into?" Rie held two fingers up, and counted on them.

"First…" she started to reply. "He managed to spill two lattes and a cup of coffee on a customer because he tripped over the bottoms of his jeans. Second, he doesn't _bleach_ his hair blonde. It's _natural_." Kagome held her hand over her mouth, trying to conceal a bit of her laughter. She failed.

"I'm sorry, but he should learn not to wear such baggy clothing… I would've _paid_ to see the person's expression when they got nailed with the lattes, though." Sakura silently agreed with her; even if she _did_ think it was somewhat unkind to laugh at someone else's misfortunes. Rie giggled quietly.

"Okay, it _was_ pretty funny," she admitted. "And the girl that was sitting with him got a kick out of it, too." Sakura chuckled at this, while Kagome was now using two hands to keep herself from exploding from laughter in the middle of a public store.

"Wait, that happened while the guy was on a _date?_" One could tell that the whole incident amused Kagome and Rie greatly. Rie grinned.

"That would've been _awesome_ if he was on a date when that happened," she consented. "But he wasn't; a friend was there with them, though you wouldn't be able to tell."

"How would you not be able to tell if someone was there or not?" Sakura asked, slightly confused at her words. Rie made a face that equaled her friend's in confusion.

"Well, he was quiet as hell," she answered in a flat tone of voice. "His _hair_ was louder than he was." Kagome stopped laughing momentarily.

"What do you mean, _his hair_?" she questioned.

"His hair was really, _really_ bright red!" Rie answered, trying to keep from yelling too much in the store. "Almost like a fire engine, or something; or some other really loud, red color!" Sakura and Kagome didn't respond to that for a few moments. Rie furrowed her brows at them. "What's up with you two, all of a sudden?"

"… Red hair…?" Sakura repeated. Rie nodded, then shrugged.

"Well, I'm pretty sure he dyed it or something," she explained. "_No _one's born with _that _color hair." Kagome gave her a skeptical look.

"Just like a fully Japanese person can't be born with _blonde_ hair?"

"_Don't_. _Mock_. _The blondeness_."

"_Right_, Rie…" Kagome turned to Sakura, while Rie went searching through the nearest rack of clothing. She raised a curious eyebrow. "I know you're thinking the same thing I am, Sakura-chan…" Sakura turned to her.

"What?" she replied shortly. "Oh, you don't mean…" She broke her sentence off, but Kagome knew just exactly what she was going to say. It was a twin thing.

"_You_ think it was Aoshi-kun too, _don't_ you?" Sakura looked to the side. Maybe she did; could she help it? Most likely, not. She knew there weren't too many people with the hair color described, but she pushed the thought down, and said the exact opposite.

"Of course not, Kagome-chan," she lied, giving a small smile. "I mean, I heard Rie-chan say red hair and, yes, I thought of Aoshi-kun, but it's not like they don't sell red dye at stores… Anybody could get a dye job like that."

"Sakura-chan, you don't think it's the slightest chance…?"

"Slightest, maybe. But not likely."

"You don't want to check?"

"No, it's fine. Let's just continue shopping." Kagome nodded her head after a minute of thinking, then left with Sakura to resume their afternoon activities.

* * *

Rinne twirled his straw around in his empty cup, growing exceedingly tired of listening to Ageha and Tsubasa snap at each other constantly. _Maybe it was a bad idea to come here with them… I should've just turned Ageha down flat, like I usually do. This is what I get for trying to be nice._ In the midst of this thoughts, Rinne felt something. Not something tangible, but a feeling. He stopped twirling his straw for a second, and looked around. _Huh?_

"Hey, Rokudo." Tsubasa's voice snapped Rinne's attention back to reality. Tsubasa was staring at him, violet eyes inquiring. "What are you looking at?" Ageha was nodding, as if she wanted to know the same thing. Rinne raised his eyebrows for a moment.

"Nothing…" he answered, in a semi-bored voice. "I… felt like I missed something… Or someone…" Tsubasa snorted.

"I know you're a weird guy, Rokudo, but come on… Enough with the 'sixth sense' crap." Before Rinne could snap at him, Ageha turned on Tsubasa again, eyes narrowed.

"My Rinne is _not_ weird!"

"_You_ can't see it because you're _dense_ as all _hell_, rich girl!"

"I am _not_!"

Rinne shook his head gently as the two went back to arguing. Maybe he _was_ weird, but that's who he was; and at the moment, his weird 'sixth sense' was telling him that somewhere, an opportunity had been missed. He couldn't shake that feeling the whole time he was at the café.

* * *

1) Yeeeaaah, I have no idea what Kain's coloring is. Takahashi hasn't given us color pages with him in them. I'm wingin' it.

2) With Ageha... Same thing with Kain. Winging it on her coloring.

3) "Yorokobi" is written with a kanji that can be read as "kei". As in Keio. Yup. (Yorokobi isn't that prestigious, I'm just pointing out the fun I had with the kanji)

4) Cyber cookies to whomever can guess as to where Rie and Hideki are from.


	4. Chapter 4

So yeah. With my own story to write, my uncle passing away (My family was REAL upset about it, so naturally, I was dragged into everything with them...), my laptop breaking down for the hundreth time (Note to readers: Vista is the worst choice you could make with a computer...), I haven't been able to get to my writing this. I apologize.

Enjoy.

* * *

"There it is, Rokudo."

"… There it is."

Rinne couldn't stop his hands from fidgeting in his pockets, nor could he stop staring up at the large, cream-colored building that was once his high school.

He had a lot to thank Sankai High for; one, for also having a middle school wing. He met Tsubasa and Miroku there. Two, for having an empty club building; he used to live there, when he wasn't legally allowed to have a job. Three, for Suzuki-sensei; probably the only teacher that gave a damn about his situation, and helped him out from time to time. Four, for having one of the best damn festivals Tokyo had to offer.

Currently, Sankai High was in the middle of preparing for its annual autumn festival. Tsubasa and Rinne were standing in front of the school, watching the students attempt to put up their stands and booths. The key word there, was _attempt_. Many of them looked like they had no idea what they were doing. This was the reason the two friends had skipped their college classes to come to their old school – To help out Tsubasa and Miroku's younger brother, Shippo, with his class's booth.

If you had to describe him in one word, Shippo was immature. True, he was a genuine trickster, and definitely had more common sense than most adults, but he was innocent incarnate. He loved everything, and was a bit of a crybaby. No truly bad thoughts running through his mind, but he was absolutely clueless when it came to the real world.

Kami knows he'll be in for the shock of his life when he starts Sex Ed.

"Shall we head in?" Tsubasa asked. Rinne gave him his normal, indifferent look.

"Let's just get this over with; and hope he _doesn't_ make us stay so he can bleed us dry again." Tsubasa raised a skeptical eyebrow.

"Who's _us_?" he repeated, flatly. "_I'm_ the one that ends up paying for his sweet tooth."

"Hey. I paid for him last time. You still owe me for that."

"Oi! Redhead and Average!"

The two college students turned their heads a sharp ninety degrees, and came face-to-face with a young girl. By the uniform, both boys could tell she was in high school. While they looked confused at their sudden nicknames, _she _looked rather annoyed.

"Are you two going to stand there loitering all day, or do you have some business here?" she demanded, hands on her hips. Tsubasa shared her glare equally.

"What's it to you, shrimp?" The girl looked at him shrewdly.

"I am _not_ a _shrimp_. I am Nazuna Kotogawa," she replied tartly. "Student Council President, thank you very much." Tsubasa didn't seem fazed by the title. Neither did Rinne; then again, nothing really fazed Rinne, so the point was invalid to begin with.

"Iinchou-san," Rinne piped up calmly. "We're simply looking for a relative. He's in middle school. Do you know where class 2-4's setup might be?"

"The middle school class?" Nazuna checked. Without waiting for a confirmation, she motioned them through the gates. "This way." Rinne followed her without a word. Tsubasa was still peeved at the greeting they had gotten, but followed nonetheless. Nazuna held her arms stiffly at her sides. "Excuse the rudeness," she started. "Being in charge of all these idiots is taking its toll on my sanity. Nearly a thousand people in the combined schools, all of them with the mentality of second graders."

"Whatever…" Tsubasa muttered. "What was up with the nicknames, though?"

"It's not like I know your names," Nazuna answered promptly.

"Okay. I get why you called him 'Redhead'," Tsubasa muttered. "But why am I nicknamed 'Average'?"

"Because you're average-looking."

"HEY!"

"TSUBASA!"

A blur of reddish-brown and black rammed into Tsubasa with the speed and might of a cannonball. Said teenager ended up on the ground, four feet away from where he was standing.

The one who had glomped Tsubasa was none other than Shippo himself. He rubbed his cheek up against his older brother, grinning wildly. "Tsubasa-niisan! What are you doing here!" Tsubasa forced a smile.

"Shippo, can you _please_ get off…?"

"I never see you anymore! Why do you always have to study?"

"_Shippo_…"

"By the way, did you remember to use your ointment-?"

"Shippo, _get off_!" Rinne stared at the two nonchalantly; he was used to seeing such scenes by now. Nazuna, on the other hand, was quite bewildered.

"Wha-? Wha-? What are they…?" she stuttered softly. Rinne turned his cool gaze on the brown-haired girl.

"My friends over there are brothers," he explained calmly.

"STEP-brothers, Rokudo!" Tsubasa corrected sharply, still having no luck in prying the young boy off him. Rinne fought to keep himself from rolling his eyes.

"Anyway… Jumonji and I came to help out with class 2-4's booth, and maybe another, if we have time before our night classes begin." Nazuna cocked her head to one side.

"And you would be…?"

"A friend of the family; Rinne Rokudo."

"I see…" Nazuna folded her arms again, a bit less hostile than last time. "I'm sorry, but I can't let any outsiders help with the festival. It's against the school's policy."

"The two of us have attended this institution, from middle school to high school. We are alumni of Sankai High. I believe that qualifies us to step foot onto the grounds while it's under construction, _and _allows us to help with any preparations. We are not asking for pay, we are doing this because we want to." Rinne's tone was unmistakably persuasive.

"Exactly!" Tsubasa piped up, having finally gotten Shippo to release him from the death grip. Shippo was now currently sucking on a lollipop. Tsubasa grimaced. _I should've just bribed him with candy in the first place_. "If you don't believe us," he continued, flipping his attention back to the president. "Go check an old yearbook or something!"

"…" Nazuna sighed. "For some reason, I feel defeated… Are you sure you to want to help?" Simultaneously, the two men nodded and saluted to the girl sailor-style. Tsubasa seemed more enthusiastic about it than his bright-haired companion, which came by no surprise. Shippo gave the student council president a wide grin, and bowed to her consecutively.

"Thank you, iinchou-san!" Shippo grabbed Tsubasa and Rinne's wrists, and dragged them along, into the crowd of students. "Come on, you two! I'll show you where my class is set up! We're doing a haunted house theme!"

"… _Joy_…" Tsubasa muttered, scowling even more once he heard the booth's theme. Rinne looked at him apathetically.

"Fear of ghosts again?" he checked. Tsubasa glared at him, his bit of nausea quickly replaced with annoyance.

"I'm _not_ afraid of them!" he retorted hotly. "That occult stuff just… gives me the _creeps_, is all…" Rinne had always found Tsubasa's wariness of anything having to do with the supernatural rather queer. The dark-haired boy had always seemed to have a knack for detecting things, even more so than his _own_ sixth sense; but if Tsubasa even got a _whiff_ of something out of the ordinary, he would carry around all sorts of good luck charms to protect himself. Even some purified ashes from his family's shrine, or something else to that ridiculous extent.

Who would want to carry around a dead person's remains, anyway?

Rinne was so busy dallying in his thoughts that he hadn't noticed that their group of three had come to a halt. Shippo was busy talking about his plans for his class's haunted house.

"… And then there's gonna be blood oozing out of this one wall, then we're gonna have these feudal Japan monsters, and then I get to make the kitsunebi for the fox spirits…!"

"Anything we can start on _now_, Shippo?" Tsubasa interrupted. Shippo scratched his head in thought.

"Well, maybe you guys could help with building the structure out of the wooden planks 'n stuff…? A lot of us aren't very good at that." Tsubasa grinned.

"Alrighty then! Time for some man's work!" Rinne shook his head slowly.

"You act as though manual labor is _fun_."

"It's time to show these middle school students what a man can do with tools and motivation!"

_**Three hours later…**_

"_I_. _HAVE_. _**HAD**__ IT WITH THIS FREAKIN' BOOTH_!"

Tsubasa moved the entrance's black drapes out of his way, and stormed off. Shippo ran after him, latching himself to his brother's legs.

"Tsubasa-niisan! Don't be like that! It was just some harmless pranks!"

"Harmless, my _butt_! What kind of _kids _sneak up on you with a _life-size skeleton _and pretend to _jump _you?"

"They were just playing! How were they supposed to know that you get scared easily?"

"I DO NOT GET SCARED EASILY! I'M JUST VERY EXCITABLE!"

Rinne watched the scene in slight amusement. The middle-schoolers standing next to him were looking confused.

"Should we not have snuck up on him like that?" one asked.

"Yeah, we thought college guys were brave," another added. Rinne shrugged.

"It wasn't the best idea," he replied. "But it's not your fault. Jumonji is… _jumpy_, when it comes to ghosts, skeletons, and anything of the sort. _Especially _ghosts." He motioned the seventh-graders away, and then stepped outside the unfinished booth to join the bickering brothers.

"But they're sorry, nii-san!"

"I am _not_ stepping back into that hellish _place_!"

"It really looks hellish?" Shippo smiled. "That means it looks good!" Tsubasa smacked his forehead, leaving a red print where his palm had been. Rinne came up from behind and tapped Tsubasa on the shoulder, earning a frightened jolt in response. Tsubasa looked over his shoulder and glared at his friend.

"Don't _do_ that to me!" he cried. Rinne's expression didn't change.

"… Do you need to take a break or something?" he asked. Tsubasa folded his arms, continuing to shake Shippo off of his legs.

"No, I don't. I'm fine." As if to test the theory, Rinne placed a skeleton's hand (Which he had skillfully taken from another part of the booth) on Tsubasa's shoulder. The result was exactly what the redhead had expected: Tsubasa jumping about seven inches in the air.

Shippo, who had let go at this point, watched in sadistic amusement as his step-brother wound up clinging to a tree branch like a cat. The brown-haired boy looked up at Rinne. "I forget; which of us is the adult here?" Rinne answered, without actually looking at his younger friend.

"In some aspects, I'd say you're definitely the adult. For example… How a grown man is more afraid of fake blood and skeletons than a twelve-year-old is." Tsubasa glared at the two of them, and dropped down from the branch by his hands.

"_Can _it, you two…" he muttered. "So I don't enjoy the supernatural as much as you guys do. _Big _deal."

"So do you want a break, or what?"

"_NO_!" Tsubasa yelled, face reddening. "I am perfectly _capable _of helping to set up this… haunted… house… _I'M FINE_!" Shippo smirked at him, chewing on a new lollipop.

"Then why are you still shaking?" he sniggered. Tsubasa reddened even more.

"_I AM NOT_!" Rinne tapped his friend on the shoulder with his skeleton hand again, successfully sending Tsubasa into the tree again. The indifferent youth simply hung his head sadly.

_I hope he doesn't act this way during the festival…_

* * *

1) _Iinchou_/ _Iinchou-san_: Student council president

2) _Kitsunebi_: Fox fire. _You know_...

Tsubasa wary of anything having to do with the occult. That's right. I went there. For the lulz. And the irony. Mostly the irony.

Now, some hints as to what's to come in the next chapter!

- Tsubasa runs into a very important person.

- Rinne finds a way to get some extra cash on the side.

- And we find out which one of them can't stand to be around so many people...

That's all I'm giving out. Bye-bye! さようなら!


	5. Chapter 5

To my anonymous reviewer: No, no I haven't actually been to a host club; but that's not the center of the plot, anyway. It's only a meeting place. The whole story doesn't center around it. So it's not like I have to make every single little detail perfect and like an actual host club. I mean, have you seen Bisco Hatori's series…?

Anyway, yadda yadda, late update, yeah. Been busy lately with my artwork and my own original stories on FP and dA. So, sorry.

Also, you're going to see a lot of ! and ? marks in the future, with a space in between them. This is because FF doesn't let me do the two together… They need to fix that.

* * *

"Welcome to Sankai's Autumn Festival! Please, enjoy yourself!"

That was the greeting given to the people who walked through the school's gate. By half-past seven, the schoolgrounds were already bustling with a crowd, eager to have themselves a good time.

With all the people and booths there, one could call it hectic, exciting, or even haphazard, in the worst case scenario. However, the more poetic might use the word... _Delicious_.

The seasonal, fall-colored decorations, the filling aromas wafting from the many yatai, the rich colors and lights from the lanterns floating around; the festival filled the five senses with a feeling of both fulfillment, and the need to be fulfilled.

The sensory appeal was the secret to the success of Sankai's Autumn Festival.

Well, that; then, of course, there's the booths and games created by the students. This year, it was the middle school class 2-4 doing the haunted house theme, instead of one of the high school classes.

This is where we find Rinne and Tsubasa.

Tsubasa was meeting and greeting the people wanting to enter the haunted house. This was simply because he didn't want to be one of the people _inside_ the booth. He also feared that he would be dreadfully bored if he simply went home and did nothing, because then there would be no one there to hang out with; Rinne was staying behind at the festival.

Rinne enjoyed being in large crowds of people, if only for one reason. When there were large amounts of people in one area, there were a lot of different ways to make some extra cash on the side. He always found ways to go about it. This time around, he was letting children draw on his face, for one hundred yen per. Why so cheap? Because he knew that kids loved to deface things with markers; and if he keeps it low-priced, parents probably wouldn't complain about letting their kids spend more.

Tsubasa chuckled, seeing his best friend's face so mutilated with random drawings. It didn't take a fool to guess that they could only have been done by the children who paid the "fee". The sketches and whatnot were so mismatched and badly drawn that, along with Rinne's completely stoic expression, it was practically a given that the dark-haired boy would burst out laughing at the scene.

"Seriously, Rokudo," he snorted. "What _won't_ you do for money?" Rinne couldn't move from his crouched position, low to the ground at children's height for obvious reasons, but answered anyway.

"Well, I won't betray friends… Or sell myself…" he murmured. "Though I suppose by being a host, I am indeed selling myself; though in a much less-vulgar way." Tsubasa rolled his eyes.

"It was meant to be a rhetorical question, but that you for the input."

"If you're going to be sarcastic, go jump in the fake blood bath."

"No _thank_ you!" Tsubasa answered quickly, snorting in defeat. The girl currently drawing on Rinne's face, a small girl with pigtails, frowned at her drawing platform.

"Hold still!" she cried. Rinne wordlessly did so. No need to lose money over an angry client. Tsubasa just shook his head. He stood silent, but only for a moment more.

"You want anything to drink, Rokudo?" he asked. "I'm going to get something for myself, so…"

"A hot coffee, if you please," the redhead answered, to the dismay of the artist drawing on his face. Tsubasa nodded.

"Alright, be back soon."

* * *

Now, while Rinne didn't mind crowds, Tsubasa absolutely abhorred them; especially big ones, like the Autumn Festival's. Maneuvering through waves of people was not one of his special talents, especially if more than half of the people were stagnant and just idling in one place. The problem was, _many_ people tended to do this, and for _far_ too long; at least, in _his_ opinion.

Tsubasa tried to avoid crowds at all costs, even though this particular one was unavoidable. He would have to come to the Autumn Festival for the next couple of years, to support his younger step-brother. Not something he was looking forward to.

About ten minutes later, Tsubasa managed to push himself out of the sea of people, with his patience miraculously still intact. _'Be back soon'? Ha. I should have just said 'See you later'. There's no way I'm getting back to the booth in the next five minutes._ Ignoring his pessimistic thoughts for the time being, Tsubasa walked over to the outside vending machine and checked its inventory.

Rinne's coffee was there, ready to vend, but Tsubasa's favorite oolong tea was freshly sold out. He frowned. _Tch. Of course they have his… Looks like I'll go for a coffee, too._

He inserted his yen, and pressed the button twice. Two loud clunks came from the machine. Tsubasa reached in carefully, testing to see how hot the coffees were before grabbing them mindlessly. The temperature tended to vary from machine to machine, and he had burnt himself more than twice. Thankfully, they weren't piping hot, and Tsubasa was able to grab both, easily slipping them into his pockets.

He looked at his watch, and grimaced when he realized that fifteen minutes had gone by since he left.

_Rokudo's gonna be ticked when I get back._

_**Back at class 2-4's booth…**_

"Enjoy your time in the haunted house," Rinne greeted another group of friends. While Tsubasa had been gone, he decided to take up his friend's job and welcome those who wanted to enter the booth.

However, twenty minutes was an amazingly long time for someone to just go and get a couple of drinks. _Knowing Jumonji,_ he pondered. _Someone running a game booth probably called him out for a round. Kami knows that guy can't resist a challenge, whether he knows he would suck at it or not. He's such an attention-deficit idiot sometimes._

"Onii-san!"

Rinne turned at the strikingly familiar voice. It belonged to a middle school girl who had previously come, wanted to draw on him. He had turned her away, because nobody gets something out of him for free. She had left, looking a little dejected since she didn't have any money on her; but she had apparently found a friend who could spare a yen or two. Rinne didn't bother holding back his puzzled expression upon seeing that there was an indefinite age difference between both girls. The friend was older, possibly around his own age.

The younger girl bounced over to him, and swung back and forth on the balls of her feet. Before Rinne could even open his mouth to ask her what she was doing, the girl turned to her friend and pointed at him.

"See?" she cried. "This onii-san lets you draw on his face!" The older girl gave him a strange look; nothing he wasn't used to already. She stared at him for a moment more before realizing the color of Rinne's hair.

"_Aoshi-kun! ?_"

Rinne jumped back at the outburst, startled by hearing his stage name out in public. This girl knew his second name? Had he met her somewhere before?

"… Yes?" he finally replied. He was a bit speechless at the moment, but even more so because he had no idea who he was talking to. The girl nodded.

"I knew it!" she exclaimed. She grinned. "Sorry I didn't recognize you at first; the lighting in this place makes it hard to see. Once my eyes adjusted, though, I _knew _it was you! Nobody has that same hair color and countenance." That's when Rinne realized it. The familiar voice, the attractive face, the way she carried herself…

This was a Higurashi.

The problem was he couldn't tell _which one_ she was. The dimmed, yellow-orange lightning made a dark brown reflection off her hair, so it was impossible to tell if it was naturally brown, or actually black. Also, besides looking nearly identical, the two girls also _sounded_ very similar. He silently prayed that Kami would send him a sign as to whether this was Sakura or Kagome Higurashi; he currently had no way of addressing her properly. Until he got that sign of his, he decided to wing it and use the girl's surname.

"… Higurashi-sama," he began. "I did not expect to see you outside Renai MAI. Let alone in a place like this." The girl cocked her head slightly.

"Why? What's wrong with it?"

"What I meant to say was, I did not expect someone of your social standing to be attending a lowly school festival." The girl frowned.

"Hey, now. Just because we're a bit wealthy doesn't mean we can't cut loose once in a while. These kinds of festivals are the most fun!" Rinne raised an eyebrow, no other part of his expression changing.

"So your sister is here as well?"

"I'm still here, you know!" The younger girl cried, irritated at being ignored. "Can I draw on his face, now, Kagome-chan?" Rinne felt like a weight had been lifted from his chest. Kami had given him his sign. _So, this is Kagome Higurashi-sama… Perhaps I should have known that to begin with. Sakura Higurashi-sama seems more… Reserved? Yes, that would be a fairly good way to describe her._ Rinne cleared his throat, feeling as if he weren't dancing on pins and needles anymore.

"I'm sorry, Rin-san-"

"Rin-_chan_." Rin spat her tongue out childishly. "Rin-san makes me sound like an old person." Rinne stared at her.

"… Right. Rin-_chan_," he started over. "I'm filling in for a friend of mine for the time being. No drawing on my face until he gets back." Rin pouted.

"He needs to hurry back, already."

"Yes, yes he does…"

_**Somewhere in the crowd…**_

"_AAGGGHHHH_! Move your fat _ass_, you _tub of lard_! The food carts are gonna be here _all weekend_!"

Tsubasa was nearly wrestling with the people he passed. It took that much effort to try to get by in one piece. Of course, he was getting negative comments as well, and he ignored all of them… Except one. One person called him out for a fistfight, but it was settled quickly… Leaving the man with teeth missing and Tsubasa with a purple cheek. Both probably would have ended up with much worse injuries had security officers not showed up.

Needless to say, Tsubasa was not enjoying the festival.

"Excuse me! Somebody?"

Tsubasa's attention perked at the call for help. It was a woman's voice. He turned his head from right to left, trying to locate the source of it.

"Can anybody help me?"

Tsubasa looked across to the other side of the aisle, and spotted the woman instantly as she continued to cry for help. Being the nice guy he was (Most of the time), he made his best attempt to part the crowd as if it were the Red Sea. A minute later, he was within distance, and tapped the woman on the shoulder. Her head turned around, and she made a sound that was almost like a gasp.

The woman couldn't have been very old; in her thirties, at best, although her small stature made it hard to guess. She had on a pitch-black kimono with a decorated red obi. A scarlet higanbana flower clip rested in her hair, which was cast with a light pink reflection thanks to the dim lighting of the festival. Her actual hair color was probably white or gray.

Observations aside, Tsubasa put on his best face. "Miss, are you okay?" The woman responded with a question of her own.

"You can see me, young man?" She almost sounded surprised. Tsubasa cocked an eyebrow_. I should really be asking __**her**__ that, since her eyes aren't even open…_

"Of course I can see you," he answered. "But never mind that. You said you were looking for someone?" The woman nodded.

"Yes, I was searching for my grandson," she said. "I needed to speak with him. Do you know where he is?"

"_Grandson_! ?" Tsubasa exclaimed. His violet eyes couldn't have been deceiving him, right? If that didn't beat all, he didn't know what did. "You look young enough to be someone's grandchild _yourself_!" Unexpectedly, the woman's expression changed from urgent to gleeful, and she began laughing loudly.

"Oh, _do_ go _on_, young man! No, _really_! Go on!" She punched him in his shoulder, sending Tsubasa back two steps. He winced. _Damn, this lady can hit!_ "But anyway, enough about my good looks. Do you think you can help me find my grandson?" Tsubasa folded his arms in thought.

"I'm not sure if I can, but I can try… Did you lose him in the crowd?" he checked, grunting at the prospect. "That's really easy to do in this place."

"Oh, no… But he goes to school here." Before Tsubasa could tell her that that wasn't enough to go on, the woman stopped him with a hand motion. "No, wait… Oh. Maybe he doesn't go here anymore…" She laughed again, but it wasn't nearly as loud this time. "Silly me, he must have graduated by now. I completely forgot." Tsubasa resisted the urge to smack his forehead; he felt it was in his best interest to not be disrespectful to the woman. "My grandson must be about nineteen or twenty by now. Where does the time go…?" She bowed to Tsubasa, surprising him with the gesture. "I'm sorry, but I have been mistaken. Thank you for the offer to help, anyway."

"… Hang on a minute, lady!" Tsubasa exclaimed. "If you're not screwing up his age too, I think I might be able to help you!" The woman smiled, her cheeks rosy with excitement.

"Really! ? Do you know him! ?"

"Well, I'm not sure…" Tsubasa scratched the back of his head. "But that age range would mean that I graduated with him, since I went to Sankai, too." The woman grabbed Tsubasa's hand, and began shaking it wildly.

"Oh, thank you so much, young man! I don't know how I can repay you!" Tsubasa looked a tad nervous; half the reason was because the woman's grip was incredibly strong for someone of her stature.

"Hey, hey! I said I'm not sure if I'll be able to- _OWW_!" Something cracked down on the back of Tsubasa's head. He turned around, raising a fist and getting ready to curse the person out, but found that it was an old man with a cane. The man pointed a bony finger at Tsubasa.

"You shouldn't be _talkin_' to yourself, ya _ninny_! People'll think yer _craaazyyyy_! What's with today's youth, _anyhow_! ?" Tsubasa didn't have time to talk back to the geezer before a woman and her son came and dragged him away.

"Grandpa, we gotta go!" the boy cried. "Hurry up!" The old man was dragged away, shouting something about Japan's future being as dim as the kids of the twenty-first century. Tsubasa had no words for the encounter.

"Oh, dear. I'm sorry, young man! That was my fault." Tsubasa turned back to the woman, and saw an apologetic look on her face. He gave her a confused look, and slipped his hands into his pockets. He made note of the coffee getting colder, and tried to think of a way to help this woman quickly; Rinne would be annoyed if he took any longer.

"Don't worry about it, miss. It wasn't your fault, it was that blind old man's. Lazy old fart couldn't even take the time to notice you."

"… … … Okay then, let's go with that." She grinned again, quickly changing her countenance yet again. "So, about my grandson-"

"Just describe him to me," Tsubasa interrupted. "I'm better with faces than I am names."

"Okay then!" The woman held her arm up in accordance to Tsubasa's height. "He'd probably be this tall by now, if a bit shorter; he always did grow like a weed… … Oh! He was also very moody back in the days. I'm not sure why he was so quiet. Maybe he took after his grandfather. He's kind to everyone, and he can come off as a bit cold to some people, so he's never had many friends." In his mind, Tsubasa had narrowed it down to around four different people, one of which he was more that familiar with.

"… And that's all? No hair color or eye color to give?" The woman suddenly had an 'A-ha!' moment, as she seemed to brighten up once hearing the suggestion.

"Oh, yes! Both his hair and eyes are bright red!" Tsubasa fell over, onto his butt. Not leaving the woman with time to be concerned about him, he shouted,

"_**Rokudo is your grandson! ?**_" The outburst earned him many a stare, but he failed to notice any of them. The woman grabbed his arm and pulled him to his feet, and stood on her tiptoes in place of jumping in joy.

"Ohhh, then you know my Rinne!" she cried. Tsubasa was still in a state of shock; his violet eyes were so wide that they just about took up most of the room on his face.

"_Know_ him? The guy is my best friend!"

"Really! ? Excellent, very excellent!" The woman clapped her hands together rapidly, hardly containing her excitement. "Does that mean you know where he is! ?"

"He's at the haunted house booth, waiting for me to get back!" Tsubasa had all of a sudden become very animated, and was not thinking too clearly. Here he thought Rokudo was a loner with no family, but his grandmother suddenly shows up! He knew one redhead that was going to be in for the shock of his life. _Wait until he finds out that he has living relatives!_ "Want me to take you to him?"

"Oh, _would _you? Young man, I could just kiss you, I'm so happy!" She laughed heartily again, not using her indoor voice. "I won't, of course; my heart belongs to one man and him alone."

"Of course, of course…" Tsubasa smiled, and held his arm out at full length. "Right this way, miss." The woman nodded, and followed him through the ocean of festival-goers.

"By the way, young man," she started. "What is your name?"

"Jumonji. Tsubasa Jumonji. And yours, miss?"

"Tamako. Just Tamako."

* * *

This festival is not the one from the manga; I'm winging it on this one, because I wanted a more season-themed one. So if you're wondering about the "fall-colored" decorations, I mean oranges, yellows, ect. Get the picture?

This was originally a longer chapter... But when my computer was reformatted I lost the actual draft. So I had to shorten it.

And damn, I didn't get to include Sakura in here :/ This was getting too long, and I didn't want to stuff everything into one chapter. But this means I can guarantee her appearance next time!

1) _Yatai_: Food carts. Google Image them.


End file.
